Crawley MP Henry Smith has hosted Manor Royal-based charity Vision Aid Overseas in the House of Commons (Tuesday, 20th March) in support of their work to fulfil a mission; to ‘enable people living in poverty to access affordable glasses and eye care.’

The Conservatives have a proud tradition of firsts when it comes to women in politics. In 1919 it was Conservative Nancy Astor who was the female MP to take her seat in Parliament. 1970 saw Betty Harvie Anderson become the first female Deputy Speaker of the Commons. 1975 saw Margaret Thatcher become the first female Leader of the Opposition, going on to become our first female Prime Minister in 1979. Last year saw Wealden MP Nusrat Ghani become the first female Muslim minister to speak at the despatch box.